I have to go
by Elizabeth Mills
Summary: Axel goes to Midgar and runs into an interesting girl there; Axel/Cissnei.


RATING: PG/PG-13  
PAIRING: Axel x Cissnei  
WORD COUNT: 2,322  
NOTES: I love this pairing sfm. xD  
PROMPT/REQUEST: 15pairings - THEME SET 2 - 5. "I have to go." See homepage for other prompts/fics of mine.

I wrote this over a year ago and still liked it, so I figured I'd post it.

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Axel wandered around. It was certainly a very different world. There were no bright colors and happy smiles, no small talking creatures with eyes too large for their head; only people in drab clothing wandering around as if they had nothing better to do with their life. Maybe they didn't.

Axel would have found it to be a rather depressing place if he could. It was one of the few times that not having a heart was really, really okay.

As he made his way through, exploring the strange world, he heard the lazy creak of a swing. He looked over to the side and noticed a woman in a formal black suit idly swinging back and forth lightly. She seemed almost as out of place as he did, as no one else he'd seen thus far has such expensive looking clothes.

So he walked over and leaned against the metal support rod of the swing set, not saying anything as he watched her out of the corner of his eye. She didn't even look up. Just when he was about to assume she didn't notice him, she spoke.

"Jeeze, you won't even say hi to me? I'm not a kid you know; you can treat me like an adult for once." She sounded young, even if she claimed she wasn't a kid.

"I think you've got the wrong guy." Axel said, almost amused.

The girl dug her feet, her scuff free shoes, into the dirt to stop swinging. "Please, who else has hair like—" She started, before turning and catching sight of him. She froze. "I thought you were someone else. You looked kind of like him from the side." She explained quickly. Axel raised an eyebrow at that remark. Maybe he didn't stand out as much as he thought.

"You sound a bit like him too though." The girl said, narrowing her gaze. Before Axel could say another word she stood up (he noticed she was even wearing a tie) and looked around. She looked like a kid. Like a kid playing dress up in clothes that fit them surprisingly well.

"Well, the guy who was supposed to meet me here is late anyway, so there's no point in sticking around. I don't really need him anyway." She said… to herself? Axel wasn't sure.

"Either way, annoying red head or not, a mission is a mission, so I really should be going." She said, this time clearly to him, as she began to walk away. "I'd say it was nice meeting you, but I didn't really meet you… and I'd also say I'll see you around, but I probably won't, unless you're new here, but that never happens, so, I guess this is goodbye." She said smiling, and he wasn't sure if she was sincere or trying to be funny. It didn't much matter either way, he supposed. She wasn't the first odd person he'd run into and he was sure she wouldn't be the last.

So he continued walking around, trying to see why Marluxia said it was such a great world. He was clearly missing something so far.

---

It would always be his competitive nature that did him in. So while he made excuses and promised Luxord items and potions in compensation for the munny that he owed him, he wasn't actually sure if he could make good on his word. He figured if it worked for the few times Marluxia played against (and lost to) Luxord then it would surely work for him.

So he picked up a pair of fingerless gloves. He wasn't sure if Luxord would find them useful, but they were cheap and looked relatively nice so Axel got them. He was also able to get quite a few potions for some cheap 'gil', as the world's currency was called. Luckily gil could be obtained easily so it wasn't hard to get whatever he felt he needed. So while we wasn't sure what, exactly, the rings and cloths he'd also gotten did, he was assured they would be useful in battle, and if he could pass them off as useful to Luxord he didn't care what they did.

"You're getting ripped off for those ability rings. You can get them for half that price on the other side of the market." Axel heard someone say behind him, much to the shopkeeper's displeasure.

Axel turned to see the same girl he had run into only a week ago last time he was here.

"I can sell them for 60% off…" The shop keeper offered, desperate to make a deal. So Axel took some of his gil back and walked away, stuffing the items in a bag.

"I would advise against that, someone will snatch it right out of your hands and take off with it. Theft is kind of common here." She said, walking next to him. Axel just nodded and started putting things away in his pockets instead, discarding the bag.

"Who are you, anyway?" Axel asked, glancing up at her to get a good look at her for the first time.

"My, you're a gentleman." She said, a hint of sarcasm lacing her voice. "I'm Cissnei. Are those for your girlfriend?" She asked, changing the subject as she saw him holding the gloves he had bought, trying to make room in his pocket for them.

"No, don't have one to give 'em to." Axel said simply.

"Boyfriend then?" Cissnei asked, looking at them dubiously.

"Not quite, but it is a guy. Let's just say I owe him, and this stuff will be my payment." Axel said, not caring to open up about the details.

She reached over and took one of the gloves from his hand. "This guy must have pretty small hands." She pointed out, holding up the glove. Now that Axel actually looked he realized why she assumed it was for a girl. He hadn't thought to really look at them when he grabbed a pair.

"I'll just return them then." He said, ready to head back.

"Good luck. You won't get your gil back. People here don't have much, so they don't like giving stuff back." She said simply, not bothering to turn around.

He stopped, figuring it'd be a waste to go back and argue over a few gil, and he had spent too much time there anyway trying to find something worth buying. He also spent some time chasing a kid who had pick pocketed him, but he didn't see any reason to mention that.

So Axel simply turned to Cissnei, handing her the other glove. She just looked at him for a moment before taking it.

"You're giving them to me?" She asked. People didn't usually give things out for free in Midgar.

"Sure. I have no reason to want them and they should fit you." He said simply, shrugging. "But I need to go now. I have to give that guy I mentioned my payment." Axel said, patting his pocket with the items in it.

And without another word he just walked off. Cissnei watched him till he disappeared around a corner. She then looked down to her hands at the gloves she was holding. She slipped them on, flexing her fingers and getting a feel for them. They fit pretty well, all things considered.

---

Cissnei jerked her arm forward in a rough, fluid motion, sending off her weapon at the creature she was fighting. Midgar was in bad enough shape that she had been sent to the city limits to help destroy a few monsters in the area. The last thing the people of Midgar needed was more troubles.

There were quite a few though, and she could only hit so many at a time. So when she threw her weapon, only to see two more shoot past her and take out the remaining monsters she thought she'd been imagining things. She didn't have time to rub her eyes as her hand reflexively reached out to catch the round object boomeranging back to her. She hadn't been imagining anything, she realized, when the two other weapons swiftly shot past, almost grazing her. She turned around only to see Axel, standing there in a slightly defensive pose, chakrams in his hands.

"Well, I guess I was wrong. I've seen you quite a bit recently." Cissnei said, referring to the first time she'd met him a few weeks ago.

Axel had grown rather fond of Midgar. He liked being somewhere that didn't seem quite as childish, where he could talk to actual people and not animals who pretended to be people. It was a nice change, and he was starting to see what Marluxia was raving about. Apparently Marulixa had been genuinely nice to him for once and told him of a nice retreat. He wasn't sure how to handle that though. But for the moment he pushed it out of his thoughts.

"Nice weapon you have there." Axel said, grinning. He seemed to get along with Cissnei well and he'd never encountered someone else with a weapon so similar to his own. She was interesting to say the least.

"Yep, I see great minds fight alike." She said (with a hint of sarcasm that Axel didn't quite catch) holding up her weapon.

"I see you're wearing them." Axel said, noticing the gloves.

For a moment Cissnei wasn't sure what he meant. She'd been wearing them daily now (they helped her stats, which was good in battle, and they just looked nice) and had forgotten she even had them on. It only took her a second to get what he meant though.

"Yeah, they're great. Thanks for giving them to me." She said, lightly smiling. "So, did that guy like the stuff you got him?"

"Well enough… He could tell I didn't pay as much as I said I did, but it all worked out." Axel responded. He'd learned he sucked at lying. Maybe that's why he never won…

"Well that's good, you aren't in debt now." Cissnei said sincerely. She was about to say something else when her phone rang. "Hold on." She told him simply, taking it out of her pocket and answering it.

"Uh huh, I just finished up… no, I haven't seen any more in my area... Uh-huh… Okay… Alright, I'll do that now." She hung up the phone and put it back in her pocket, looking back at Axel.

"Work. I gotta run." Before Axel could say anything she continued. "But, I'll see you… let's say, this time next week at the swings?" She asked, not really asking so much as saying. "And don't be late; I won't wait around for you." She told him, as if he'd already agreed to come back. He didn't say no though.

She walked away briskly without another word, and Axel continued exploring the world at his leisure.

---

That day Axel hadn't been doing anything special. He had been informed to stay in The World That Never Was until Number XIII had been briefed and was ready to meet the others. Xemnas was out at another world so Axel would have to wait to present his finding to the rest of the Organization until the Superior got back. For now Axel was relaxing in his room and Roxas was with Xigbar until Xemnas got back. Which didn't take long, as Saix had been sent out to tell him they now had a thirteenth member.

So when he finally arrived back a meeting was called and Axel showed Roxas to him. They went through the normal things that happened when getting a new member, such as explaining what the Organization was (if needed), assigning someone to show them around (which was almost always the member before them) and other introductory, 'Welcome to the Organization' type things. Axel found it mind numbingly dull.

So at the end of the meeting, Larxene sighed dramatically and grabbed Roxas by the elbow, taking him off to show him around like Marluxia had done for her. Axel just watched them walk off into a portal.

During the next few days Axel became known for hanging around Roxas more than really necessary, but no one really thought much of it, because many of them indulged in social interactions among the others, so why not?

Cissnei sat on the swing, dressed more casually but still obviously out of place. She didn't live in Midgar so on her day off she'd had to take the train to get there, and she'd worn regular clothes instead of her work suit. She still stuck out amongst the residents of Midgar, but she lived above the plates and that's just how life was.

She sat there idly, checking her phone to see the time. He was late. She rolled her eyes. He had seen her leave when someone she was waiting for was late, didn't he believe she'd do it to him?

She was about to leave when she noticed children gathering around the side of the slide. She couldn't help but wonder what was so interesting, even if it was probably nothing… so she walked over, standing behind the small group. She saw on the plain side of the slide was a message the looked burnt into the dome part of the slide. It wasn't very large so she stepped a little closer to get a better look.

'Can't make it. –Axel' was all it said.

Cissnei wondered if that could be the guy she had met, and suddenly realized she didn't even know his name. She walked away without saying a word and almost laughed at herself at how silly it was that she hadn't even bothered. It was almost ironic. She'd given him the fake name she always used and he'd never said his till now.

So she walked off to enjoy the rest of her day off.

She and Axel never met again.

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Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed it! As always, critiques are loved and comments welcomed. :)


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